If you are planning on writing your own vows for your wedding, then you may be wondering how long your vows should be. You want to express your love and admiration for your spouse and you don't want them to be too short or too long. So what's the sweet spot when it comes to vow length? Keep reading for today's Wedding Wednesday blog post!
The average vows are between 45 seconds to 3 minutes.
If you take the standard vows into consideration (the vows you would say if you didn't write your own), those are usually around 2 minutes total for both of you to recite with your officiant. 45 seconds to 3 minutes may not seem like a lot of time but when you are standing up in front of your guests, it will feel a lot longer than you think.
Consider your talking speed.
You won't want to speed read through your vows so your spouse can understand what you say and savor the moment, however, you will want to keep your talking speed in mind. Some people naturally talk fast and some more slower. A fast talker can fit a lot into a 1 minute vow where as a slower talker may take 1.5 minutes to say the same thing. This is totally fine but you will want to consider this as you write your vows and be sure to say them out loud and time them so they are what you envision. Remember, most folks tend to speak a bit faster when they are nervous or in front of a crowd!
Consider your guests.
You may feel like 45 seconds to 3 minutes is not enough time to really express your feelings to your spouse and that's okay! However, you will want to keep your guests in mind. A 10 minute vow reading may make your guests antsy and impatient (especially if the weather is hot and humid). If you want to keep your vows short but want to say more to your spouse, a hand written letter or card that is delivered to your spouse on the morning of the wedding is a sweet way to express your love while still keeping your vows shorter.
Don't feel pressured to talk for a certain amount of time.
After I said all of that, you don't have to stick to what I said! This is your wedding so feel free to do what makes the most sense to you! Don't feel pressured to have vows longer or shorter than what you envision and what fits you and your spouse. You can just use the above as a starting point.
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